Tag: fantasy

Imperial law enforcer Amaranthe Lokdon is good at her job: she can deter thieves and pacify thugs, if not with a blade, then by toppling an eight-foot pile of coffee canisters onto their heads. But when ravaged bodies show up on the waterfront, an arson covers up human sacrifices, and a powerful business coalition plots to kill the emperor, she feels a tad overwhelmed.Worse, Sicarius, the empire’s most notorious assassin is in town. He’s tied in with the chaos somehow, but Amaranthe would be a fool to cross his path. Unfortunately, her superiors order her to hunt him down. Either they have an unprecedented belief in her skills… or someone wants her dead.

The Emperor’s Edge by Lindsay Buroker

“A thrilling fantasy adventure!” – Me

If I had to sum up the Emperor’s Edge books, that would do it. I will admit I wasn’t sucked in on the very first page, but a few pages past that I was hooked. A friend of mine recommended The Emperor’s Edge (probably years ago) and I just hadn’t picked it up yet. Not too long ago I saw the first three books in an omnibus for 99 cents and decided to get it. I mean, for that price I wasn’t even worried if I ended up not liking it. Turns out I love it! I read the first three in less than a week. The third one (Deadly Games) I even stayed up late to finish although work would be waiting the next morning. I was so hyped up, strictly from the story, that I could not sleep until I finished it. I had to know what happened.

Buroker has a gift for witty dialogue, often making me laugh out loud. The team she has put together in her novels works well, and allows each character to shine. Everyone has a distinct personality and gets fair page time. She doesn’t linger too long on one set of characters before checking in with the others, and the team is never split up longer than they need to be.

These stories have stayed with me as well. I’m a pretty avid reader, and honestly I don’t remember all of the books I’ve read. With these books and characters, I want to visit again. I’ve even dreamed about them!

And now that I’ve finished all the books and short stories in the Emperor’s Edge series, I’m going to read her box set called The Forgotten Ages, which takes place about 20 years earlier and explores a couple of characters we meet later in the Emperor’s Edge series. Plus a young assassin apparently makes an appearance.

Since time immemorial, humans have worshipped the gods they call Fhrey, truly a race apart: invincible in battle, masters of magic, and seemingly immortal. But when a god falls to a human blade, the balance of power between men and those they thought were gods changes forever. Now, only a few stand between humankind and annihilation: Raithe, reluctant to embrace his destiny as the God Killer, Suri, a young seer burdened by signs of impending doom, and Persephone, who must overcome personal tragedy to lead her people. The Age of Myth is over; the time of rebellion has begun.

I was so excited to receive an ARC from NetGalley! I’m a fan of Sullivan’s work, and first started with his Riyria Revelations series. From there I read the Riyria Chronicles as well. So maybe I was a little biased going into this, based on how much I’ve enjoyed his past work.

When the new series was announced I was very eager. And the first installment, Age of Myth, did not disappoint. In the Legends of the First Empire Sullivan is expanding the world that readers have come to know through Riyria by taking us back in time so we can learn some of the history as to how this world developed. Age of Myth is the start of that history, where we see fundamental beliefs challenged. Humans are learning that elves aren’t gods, and the elves are learning that humans aren’t animals.

If you haven’t read any of Sullivan’s previous work, that’s not an issue. You can pick this one up and dive right in. There are some throwbacks that readers will pick up on. A few things they’ll recognize from the Riyria novels. However, I think it would be just as interesting to read the Legends of the First Empire first, and then follow up with Riyria.

Age of Myth is well paced. I was always eager to read more, and did not get bored with any section. Sullivan has a way of writing a large cast of characters, where each character has their own history. Sometimes with larger casts some of the characters can come off as two-dimensional. Not here. Even Grin the Brown has a history that’s woven into the story, making her feel every bit a full fledged character. And she’s a bear.

Derric Harver never expected to amount to anything more than the palace stableboy, but when Princess Maria’s curse keeps her from accepting a prince’s proposal, she turns to him for help, and he doesn’t dare refuse.

With the help of a lady’s maid and a prince, Derric and Maria embark on a dangerous adventure to find the sorceress who cast the curse. Along the way they battle deadly creatures and make new friends–all the while struggling with the undeniable chemistry between them. Reaching their destination won’t be easy, but the true peril lies in the truths they’ve fought for years to keep hidden.

A Stolen Kiss by Kelsey Keating

A Stolen Kiss is the first in the Stolen Royals Series–an adventure with magical creatures, dangerous secrets, and being true to the power within.

The title and cover art is what drew me to this book while surfing through NetGalley. I am so glad I decided to pick it up. It’s a fun, cute read that breathes a new life into fairytales. There is magic, good, evil, and a host of fantastical creatures. Just what a fantasy needs. Plus a bit of romance thrown in too. I enjoyed it immensely.

Each character is portrayed in a way that shows the world is not black and white. The good guys do bad things, and the bad guys aren’t always what they seem. I did feel that it took a bit to really get pulled into the story, but once the group had set out on their journey I was hooked.

I went looking to see if there was another book available, since A Stolen Kiss is listed as #1 in The Stolen Royals series. Unfortunately there aren’t any other books out yet. However, the author indicated on Goodreads that the plan is for a four book series. The next two will deal with characters that were mentioned in A Stolen Kiss, and the final book sounds as if might be an adventure for all of them.

I’m going to be keeping an eye out for any updates pertaining to the second book in the series. I can’t wait to read more!

Three times they tried to kill her. Then a professional was hired. So was Riyria.

When the last member of the oldest noble family in Avryn is targeted for assassination, Riyria’s Royce and Hadrian are hired to foil the plot. Three years have passed since Hadrian, the war-weary mercenary, and Royce, the cynical ex-assassin, joined forces to become rogues-for-hire. All has gone well until they’re asked to help prevent a murder. Now they must venture into an ancient corner of the world to save a mysterious woman who knows more about Royce than is safe and cares less about herself than is sane.

The Death of Dulgath by Michael J. Sullivan

The latest Riyria adventure featuring our two favorite thieves, Royce and Hadrian. (Note the wording, I said latest because I truly hope there will more of Royce and Hadrian’s adventures). I’ve read all of the Riyria books, and am happy to say that this series holds up while providing a closer look at Royce and Hadrian and how they came to be Riyria.

The Death of Dulgath follows the pair south, to an idyllic village where everything is not as it seems. Throughout the adventure they face mishaps and hardships, showing that both are still learning and growing in their partnership and on their own.

Sullivan is a great world builder, and I’m hoping that if he continues Royce and Hadrian’s adventures that we might see them travel further abroad to some of the other places mentioned in the Riyria series.

Each story is built so that is can be a standalone adventure, yet there are multiple nuggets in there for fans of the series. With The Death of Dulgath I was pleased that the Fhrey were mentioned, as they are the focus of his newest series, The First Empire (of which I’m happily looking forward to).

Morrigan’s Cross is the first in The Circle Trilogy by Nora Roberts, and like all good beginnings, we’re introduced to the major characters. This set of books happens to have six, but the first and foremost is a gentleman named Hoyt. He is the central figure of the book, and is referred to as a “serious man” in earnest and in jokes. That’s a pretty accurate description of him. Hoyt is a sorcerer from 12th century Ireland, who gets pulled forward in time to battle Lilith, the vampire queen. This makes his character feel out of place for most of the book, some of which is to be expected, but I’m hoping that in the second book he will have become more comfortable in his own skin.

Hoyt is tasked with finding the other members that will make up the circle for the fight to come. We meet each of these characters, as they’re introduced throughout the book. Each of these six main characters has a part to play in the coming story. During this book they’re all trying to learn what that role is and how to interact with each other. As this progresses into the second book I expect we’ll see that they play larger parts than just the role initially assigned to them.

A lot happens in this first book; time travel, death, a wedding, fights, and with so many characters involved there’s the worry that the story will become overly complicated and lose the reader. That didn’t happen here. Even for all the action and interaction of the characters, it was easy to keep up with which made for an enjoyable read.

This is the first novel by Nora Roberts I’ve read, and I have to admit that I was originally a little biased towards her and thought I might not enjoy her work. In my mind Nora Roberts was pegged squarely in the romance category, and not in a good way. I can’t really explain where that notion came from, but I’m glad that I have the chance to revisit my opinion.

A friend of mine gave this trilogy to me as a Christmas present, and proved my initial conception wrong. It was definitely a good choice to spark my interest, as it falls into my favorite genres of books – fantasy and the supernatural. I was eager to know what would happen to the characters, and how the story would unfold. Yes, there’s still some romance in here, but the characters and the plot drive this book, not just the romantic interactions. I became invested in the book, and now I can’t wait to read the next two in the trilogy. I have another Nora Roberts trilogy that was given to me as well, and it’s now gotten a higher spot in my to read list.

Next up is The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi for the book club I’m in. After that I’ll be back to read the second book in The Circle Trilogy.